Close Your Eyes
by emo-black-cat
Summary: ShikaTema... Things go wrong, things go right... Some things just turn out perfect! Shikamaru and Temari both love each other, but it seems like everything they pass is a potential threat to their realtionship! Rated M for... future happenings.
1. Chapter 1 White Glove

The music was calm and slow, but still too loud for Temari. The small orchestra in the corner of the hall was a master at playing calmly, but still being heard on the other side of the room. She was at the Konaha Ball, which was held annually. As the new Kazekage, she was required to go. Unfortunetly, she was alone. She had no family left to bring her there, no boyfriend to dance with. No, she had come alone.

She was wearing a long black dress that came to the floor. Despite its smooth appearance, it was very itchy and uncomfortable. She was wearing long white gloves up to her shoulders. There were white bows and flowers scattered along the bottom of the dress.

Someone walking through the large doors caught her attention. Nara Shikamaru, fashionably late, as always, was just arriving. She waited for his date to come after him, or for him to turn around and bring someone back with him. But he just strolled in. Him and his black suit with a bright red tie. He looked no different than anyone else, so Temari thought it would be easy to ignore him. But he directed his attention directly to her, and walked her way immediately. He seemed to be able to sense that she was there.

She closed her eyes and took a breath. _Why me?_ As he walked over she wondered if she could shake him off. Pretend like she was the only one in this crowd of thousands of people that didn't watch him arrive. Maybe he didn't recognize her! Of course. It _had_ been 7 years.

But then again, the closer he got to her, he began to look exactly the same as when they had met. Maybe seven years wasn't that long…

"Hey."

Temari opened her eyes.

"You okay?"

She almost laughed. One: he remembered her. Two: he talked to her in the exact same way as he used to. Three: this old crush was coming back…and she knew that was a bad sign.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"Wow," he laughed, "It's been a while, hasn't it? How long has it been…"

"Seven years," Temari finished. She changed the subject. "Are you here alone?"

He groaned. "Yeah, still alone after all these years."

"Yeah, me too…"

Both of them knew what their minds were wandering too. _No one was like you..._ they both thought at the same time, then immediately banished the thought.

"I was sorry to hear about your brothers," Shikamaru brought up.

"Yeah," Temari didn't want to say too much. It was a top-secret subject, and even though Shikamaru already knew everything about it, she didn't want him to.

"So what's it like… being Kazekage, I mean," Shikamaru changed the subject again, desperately trying to start a real conversation.

At this Temari relaxed and said more than a few words. "Tiring. Paperwork, missions to assign… Everyday, over and over."

Shikamaru let out a playful sigh. "Sounds tiring…!"

Eventually a conversation formed, and by nightfall they were laughing together. Neither one of them mentioned anything close to a a complement, afraid to give themselves away.

The quartet changed abruptly to a faster song, and Temari closed one eye. How could all these people bear the volume of the music? She put a hand over one ear, then the other. Shikamaru had stopped talking and was trying to ask Temari what was wrong, but all she could hear was the music blaring into her eardrums. She stumbled towards the door as her head began to spin. She was feeling faint. All of the sudden she collapsed, but Shikamaru caught her around the waist. She was totally weak, still conscious, but powerless. He led her to the door and outside where it was quieter. He didn't need to ask what was wrong. All that mattered was that she was in pain. She needed air, quiet, and a place to sit down.

She sat down on a nearby bench, regaining a tiny bit of her strength to keep herself upright. Shikamaru sat next to her and tried to comfort her, but she pulled away and got up. She tried to walk down the street, and then began running… fast. Shikamaru called after her, "Where are you going?!"

"Home," she yelled back imagining and hallucinating that she was miles ahead of him.

"Sunagakure is a three days walk from here!" He grabbed her arm and tugged until she stopped trying to run away. "Come on. We're going to my house."

So he walked her carefully down the streets as she wobbled and somehow managed to stay upright.

If she had been in her usual state of mind, she probably would have only been able to think about how Shikamaru was holding her hand. Shikamaru. Was holding _her _hand.

Shikamaru led Temari up the stairs to his bedroom, and she pulled her hand away from his independently. Still faint, she stumbled across the room and then leaned against a wall for support. She decided to stay there, but before she could finish her thought, her back slid down the wall and she collapsed unconscious on the floor.

Shikamaru looked at her, still in her ball gown on the floor. Her head fell down limp as the last traces of consciousness faded from her body. She moved her lips slightly with a last effort, but nothing came out. He smiled a little smile and then turned into the bathroom.

He untied his ponytail and slipped it out of his hair, letting his hair fall down on its own. No matter how troublesome they were, he had still worn a tuxedo to the ball. He loosened his tie and then slowly let it down, leaving the knot to hang low on his chest. _What am I doing?_ He put his hand down on the bathroom counter and rubbed his forehead. He took off the rest of his clothes and then turned on the water in the shower. He needed an excuse to take up time.

When he stepped out of the bathroom with his clothes on, Temari was still asleep. He was wearing a very thin shirt and sweatpants—what he would usually wear to bed. He looked at the blonde, sitting on the floor and thought about how uncomfortable that dress must have felt. He, very calmly, walked over to her. He only hesitated when his hand hovered over the zipper on the back of her dress. What if she woke up? Was the only question in his mind. He trusted himself not to invade her privacy, but he doubted that Temari did too. But he reminded himself that it was for her own comfort. It's not like she was awake to do it herself, right?

He dressed her in a baggy T-shirt, much too big for her, and a pair of sweatpants, the same size. She was still asleep when he was done, so he decided to just leave her be. He sat on the bed and for a long time, just staring at her. Suddenly she jolted awake and stood up from the floor. Her hand flew to her head and she moaned, leaning back on the wall. After a few seconds she turned to see Shikamaru sitting there, staring at her, and jumped. She saw her dress in the corner and slapped Shikamaru in the face.

He turned his face back to look at her. She felt guilty, because she knew he wouldn't invade her privacy. "Sorry…" She looked down to her lap.

At this Shikamaru laughed. "_You're_ sorry?" He decided not to go further. He knew what he was going to do, but he hesitated and let the silence drag on.

He then realized that he had accidentally left on the long, delicate glove that had so well complemented her dress. He took a breath and closed his eyes for a moment. "Close your eyes," he said, against his better judgment.

She tried to hide her blush but failed and let it creep over her cheeks. She closed her eyes, against _her_ better judgment.

Shikamaru hesitated, but not noticably. She took her hand lightly, as if they were going to dance. He knelt to the ground, on one knee with her hand in his. He closed his eyes, too. And very gently slipped off the long white glove, until the whole thing was off of her hand. He brushed his lips on her fingertips and her lips smiled just the tiniest bit. He kissed the top of her hand, as if she were a queen and he were unworthy. Then her wrist, and a little above that… and all the way up her arm. At her shoulder he stopped, hesitating one last time.

He pressed his lips to her neck as Temari kept her eyes closed. He continued up to the beginning of her jaw, and then paused again. There was no hesitance in his movements now, if she hadn't pushed him away by now…

Temari felt brilliant as Shikamaru trailed his lips up to hers and the space between them disappeared. She wanted to move, but her body didn't agree. She just stood there, letting Shikamaru do all the work. He moved his tongue over her lips twice and she opened her mouth into a tired smile. He felt the smooth surface of her bright white teeth with his tongue.

He ran his fingers through her hair and took out the ponytails in the back of her head. He felt around the back of her head and held her face in his hands. Then he tugged on her hair and her head fell back weakly, exposing her neck. He nibbled on her skin and then kissed her more strongly up and down her neck.

He felt a little more confidence. He was there in his room... with the most amazing girl... alone...

He grabbed her wrists and pinned them to the wall, pressing his lips to hers with the same force. Finally, Temari's want over powered her stubborn body, and she began kissing back. Shikamaru licked her lips again, begging for entrance. When she gave it to him, he explored every part of her mouth with just his tongue, and they both silently agreed that it was the most brilliant feeling in the world. Temari, for one of the first times in her life, felt feminine. Sometimes she needed to feeling of being controlled. And Shikamaru finally realized that some things are worth the trouble.

Shikamaru trailed his hands down and clasped them around her waist, realeasing Temari's wrists from captivity. She used the freedom to throw her arms aroun dhis neck and run her hands through his hair, which he had left down after the shower.

Temari had this weird twinge in her heart all of the sudden, and it felt somewhat farmiliar. Like something was wrong here. But... it felt so right.

Not without hesitation, Shikamaru slid one hand underneath the shirt she was wearing, just his fingertips. It was so long, his hands were still on cloth. He moved his hands up, desperate to feel her. But it would have to wair, because as soon as he touched her skin, Temari stopped. She didn't just stop, she slowly fell limp. At first Shikamaru thought maybe she had fainted again, but her eyes were open. She was looking down to the floor, so he could barely see her eyes. She sank down and sat on the floor below him.

He pounded his hand on the wall in a fist, and his forearm stayed there. His eyes were closed.

"You're right," he said, and then walked down the stairs and out the door

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**TO BE CONTINUED

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**


	2. Chapter 2 Notes

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Second chapter! this one is a little more romantic... not so much just kissing but a little more meaning.

PLEASE DO NOT ACCUSE ME OF PLAGAIRISM!! There is another version of this story on a different website, but I wrote both versions of this story... I did not steal it. the version on dA is a little different, editted it some so I didn't have to put on a "Mature Content" sticker... this chapter doesn't real have anyting like that in it, though.

ENJOY

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And that was that. No goodbye. No "see you soon!". Just a closed door and a single tear.

Temari almost called out, but her voice cracked. He had left her there, sitting in a cold, dark room, crying. But he didn't know it, and it wasn't his fault.

There was a sharp knock at the door. Chouji stumbled out of his bed. When he opened the door, he was still rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

Shikamaru's face processed into his brain only after a few moments passed of him standing there. At his door. At 11:30 pm.

Chouji groaned. "I know I shouldn't ask, but… why?"

"You're right," Shikamaru responded. "You shouldn't ask."

He didn't have anything with him, no pillows or blankets. He just laid down on the couch as Chouji climbed back into his bed. Shikamaru could explain later.

"Go to sleep, man. You need it," Chouji moaned from the bed after hours had passed of Shikamaru's muffled wails. He rolled over onto his back. "And you're not an idiot."

Shikamaru turned over on the couch. It's not like it mattered, anyways. I mean, who was he kidding, anyways? Temari was the iKazekage/i. At midnight, Temari had left for Sunagakure. And it might as well be another 7 years before they ever spoke again. Another long, painful 7 years. He mumbled to himself in disgust, "Heh. Second time's a charm, isn't it…"

Walking was miserable. 3 days full of walking, drinking, stopping, more walking, more walking… maybe an occasional scrap of food. The nonexistent farewell made it all the worse. And it was all Temari's fault, too. "It didn't feel right" was no excuse for stopping a bliss like that.

She groaned at the feeling that was overwhelming her other emotions. iForget him, forget him, forget him, forget him… you do NOT like him, you do NOT like him, you do NOT…like him… you…/i she stopped.

iYou do not… love him…/i

She stopped right there on the path. And she didn't take one more step forward.

In the morning, Shikamaru might have very well have been dead. He walked to his apartment, and it was like no one else in the world knew he existed. Either that or he hadn't heard them when they called out. He got inside and just moved up the stairs like a zombie. He walked across the room and sat down against the wall in the exact same spot as Temari had. He curled himself into a ball and then rested his forehead on the top of his knees.

In the end, he wasn't sure if he was crying, screaming, sleeping or just dying.

Somewhere along the way, he put a piece of paper on the wall, just in case she came back. He wanted her to see it. But somewhere inside he didn't want her too. It would just make things worse.

Temari creaked open the door of Shikamaru's apartment… something she had always wanted to do.

Shikamaru, with his keen sense of hearing opened his eyes.

All of the lights were off in the house, so she assumed it was empty. Or that he was asleep.

Shikamaru called out with a cracked voice, "Who's there?"

Temari closed her eyes, and decided not to say anything, and proceeded to creak up the stairs.

Shikamaru, too numb to defend himself, just watched in the darkness. Once, he looked at the clock. 7:47pm. How long had he been sitting there?

Temari finally finished the staircase, and felt along the walls. Her hand hit something and iflip!/i the lights went on.

Shikamaru stared. He wanted to run up and embrace her and scream, "You came back!" But he felt too dead to do anything. He just sat there and leaned his head back against the wall looking up to the ceiling.

They both thought about going into the bathroom and washing off their tearstreaked faces. But Temari didn't want to take her eyes off of Shikamaru. And Shikamaru didn't want to get close enough to her to reach out and touch her, or he feared that disaster would strike again.

Temari took a step forward, "I…I-I…"

"It's okay, Temari," he tried to take joy in saying her name for probably the last time. "You left your dress." He nodded his head to the corner. "You can take it back."

She looked to the ground and walked over to the pick up the silky dress. "A-"

"And the glove is over here, you might need that."

The white glove was draped across the floor by Shikamaru's feet.

She watched the ground pass beneath her as she slowly walked over and bent over to pick it up.

She hovered there for a minute, staring at him with those bright blue eyes.

She whispered something, barely audible. "Close your eyes…" She was afraid of what she was doing.

He closed his eyes, excited but scared that he might be overestimating her intentions.

On her hands and knees, she leaned towards him and pressed their lips together. Neither one moved… it was such a simple kiss. They sat there with both of their eyes closed, they held out the moment as long as they could. But then Temari was crying again and she needed to leave. Temari always hated goodbyes. She was never an emotional person... and she didn't know why that was coming out in her now. Crying was usually very rare for her.

Shikamaru's eyes were still closed while she ran down the stairs and out the door. He understood that she was the Kazikage, and that was probably why this was hard. But Temari had said something while she was leaving that she hoped he wouldn't hear. But he did hear, he was just too afraid to admit it.

His whole mind was mixed up with a jumble of emotions. He was devestated that she had to leave, but the words still rang in his head… and he was sure they always would.

He got up, suddenly aware of everything going on inside his _body_ He was hungry.

When he got up, he felt something in his pocket. He knew he hadn't put it there, too.

He reached his hand into his pocket and pulled out the white glove and a piece of paper folded up as small as possible.

He looked at the glove first. Inside were the words, "See you soon." He clutched the glove close to him, then delicately put it on the table next to him. He unfolded the paper carefully, one fold at a time. IT seemed like hours before he was able to read the message. It was the paper he had left for her on the wall. On one side, in Shikamaru's handwriting, were the words "I love you." On the other side, in Temari's neat cursive, were the words, "I love you too."

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**TO BE CONTINUED**


	3. Chapter 3 Kazikage

Shikamaru slept soundly that night. He was happy… for the first time in a long time.

He was oblivious to the fact that Temari wasn't with him. He felt like dancing. It was so unlike him, but that didn't stop him. He felt like he was 100 feet in the air. And the air was fresh and cool, he was breathing it! He would lay in the grass and watch the clouds go by, even in the middle of the night.

Luckily for him, he was off duty for missions for a while. If he hadn't been, the feeling would have gone away. And he knew he would never want that to happen. He felt like he could fly.

Every minute his mind wandered to Temari's beautiful blue eyes… or anything else about her.

He was like a little bumble bee… wandering from one great thing to another, collecting what he could. Even if some flowers didn't give him anything, he just moved on. Nothing stuck to him, except what he wanted to.

_She loves me!_

_I love her!_

By the time he realized how out of it he was, it had been a month. A imonth/i! He was astonished at himself. He had acted like a total… iNaruto/i… for a imonth/i! Trying to get back to normal, he quickly put on a regular face for his newest mission. Which to his delight, was in Sunagakure. He was to travel to the ally village, collect a few available shinobi to help in Konaha. During his daze, Konaha had received an over abundant supply of mission requests. While all of the shinobi were out trying to lower the number of problems around the great ninja villages, the Fifth Hokage was concerned about Orochimaru striking again on the Leaf village. So she assigned Shikamaru to fetch a few well-trained ninjas to stay in Konaha to help out around the village.

On his way to Suna, reality set in. She loved him… as long as that really ihad/i happened. And of course, a month was a long time to be single for a woman like Temari.

When he arrived at the village, he was supposed to head for the Kazikage's office. Temari's office. Which he did.

He was nervous when he knocked on the door to her office. All bliss and wonder had faded by now. He missed her, and couldn't wait to see her again. Had she changed? Somehow, he hoped not. The glove and the note was still in his pocket. His hands were in his pockets feeling them for comfort and she called him in.

He slowly turned the handle and opened the door.

"You might have to wait a second," Temari said, without looking to see who it was. She had someone others there with her, and she was telling them something about a new mission they were assigned to.

He hesitated. It had only been a month, but it felt like years, now that he thought about it. "Sorry for interrupting…" He said, somewhat quietly.

She looking up from the group of genins and their sensei while still talking. "You'll need to go to the… border… and… and…" she was staring at Shikamaru now, losing all of her words.

The group of genins all turned to look at Shikamaru standing in the doorway of the half-open door of the office.

One of the genins raised an eyebrow then turned back to look at Temari along with the others.

The jounin leading the squad looked over his shoulder at him and half-smiled, then turned back to Temari, who was still stumbling to find her words.

After much effort, she managed to spit out the objective of their mission and mutter an apology to the jounin. Shikamaru couldn't hear what she had said to him, but he seemed to know all about him as well as Temari, and smiled and laughed. He patted her on the shoulder and said, "Good luck!" To which she faked a smile and watched them walk out of the door.

Then it was just them. Standing there, waiting until the other said something. A month apart might as well been an eternity.

After a while of just standing there looking at each other. Temari ran up to him and embraced him. Shikamaru instinctively wrapped his arms around her also.

Temari pulled away and wiped off her black dress, as if it were dirty. She cleared her throat and then smiled. Sitting down into her desk, Shikmaru stepped up in front of the desk, as if he were just accepting a mission from another kage. Which, of course, he _was_… but it wasn't just another kage. It was Temari.

Temari tried hard to keep up her regular attitude. She knew for sure that her jounin friend was outside the door, "training" his new genins' information gathering (more commonly referred to as EAVESDROPPING) skills on their conversation.

"What do you need?" She managed to say calmly.

He studdered. "…I was sent…" She was sitting there. _Right in front of him_. And he was just standing there. Talking to her like she was just another person! "I was sent by the Fifth Hokage to collect a few well-trained shinobi. We are having a shortage of shinobi in our village… Lady Tsunade is worried that we will be attacked by enemies in our time of low defenses. She asked me to collect a few trusted shinobi to help out around the village."

There was a long silence.

He breathed out. "Is there anyone you'd … like to … recommend?"

She pulled out a piece of paper and a pen, and proceeded to scratch down names of shinobi that they could spare to temporarily give to the Leaf village. "How long do you estimate they will be there?"

"As long as necessary."

She nodded, closing her eyes and forcing another smile as she handed the paper to Shikamaru. It felt so strange to her… having a formal conversation with him.

There was another awkward silence.

Shikamaru took another breath. "She asked me to gain their trust myself, first. I'll have to spend time with them before I can take them to the village." He paused. "… so… I'll be here all week."

But they both knew that really meant something more along the lines of, "When do you get off work?"

Shikamaru wandered through the village made of sand, looking up at the clouds. His mind was wandering around as well, trying to avoid thoughts about the night ahead of him. What was he going to _do_? He distracted himself. It must have been hard to be Kazikage. _It would suck_, he concluded.

In fact, this whole thing would be a whole hell of a lot easier if Temari wasn't the Kazikage. How _troublesome_.

He gave himself a mental slap in the face as someone ran up to him. He had seen the face before, but he didn't remember who it was.

There was a long conversation with the person, the whole time Shikamaru wasn't listening to the words, but studying the face and trying to remember who he was.

He let out a sigh as he finally left and he was free to wander some more.

Stumbling upon the perfect cloud-gazing spot, he climbed up a hill and sat down. His legs were extended and he was leaning back on his hands. His eyes went up to the sky and he sighed again. Of course there wouldn't be any clouds. It was the middle of the desert, of course.

That set aside, he laid down anyways. After a while, he rolled over on his side to look at the horizon. The way that it was waving in the heat was a little mezmerizing, and he stared at it for a while.

Suddenly there was a crack. A series of cracks, actually, and Shikamaru bolted upright.

The summer sun was fading and the landscape looked dimmer than before. Evening was setting in, and after the popping stopped, there was applause and laughter.

_Must be some kind of festival_, he thought, and made his way back towards the center of the village.


	4. Chapter 4 The Festival

Temari's house, of course, was right where it had always been. Except this time, there was no Gaara or Kankuro to pelt him with sand when he showed up at their door.

He shivered at the thought. Goodtimes, good times…

There was a light on inside the small house, so he knocked on the door.

There was shuffling heard inside and some whispering, easily heard through the thin walls of hardened sand.

"Stay here!"

"But—"

"Eh! Stay here!"

He smirked, wondering what that was about and who she was talking to. A thought ran through his head. Was she not living alone…? Was it a man…

The door swung open, interrupting Shikamaru's thoughts. Temari stood there for a minute and they smiled at each other.

"For God's sake, Temari! Just let him in!" Someone yelled from the back of the house.

She closed her eyes in embarrassment. "Come in," she managed.

Shikamaru inwardly laughed, but decided not to let it come out loud. His mother had done the same thing to him too many times for it to be so funny any more.

Temari motioned her hands for him to sit down on the only couch in the room. Which seemed vaguely empty compared to the last Shikamaru had been there.

Temari breathed out, trying to be patient. _Damn Daichi…_ she thought to herself. He had previously "broken" all of the other chairs in the house, forcing her to sit right next to Shikamaru.

Right then, the jounin that had been in Temari's office earlier with his group of genin came in through the doorway to the kitchen. He was holding a glass of water in one hand and used the other to wave in greeting to Shikamaru. "Hello," he said bluntly.

He stood up from his place on the noticably small couch to greet the man back. "I'm Shikamaru."

"I know," he nodded, leaving Shikamaru a little puzzled. He was almost positive they had not met before. "I'm Daichi." He turned his gaze ot Temari who was looking at him with the kind of look telling you to stop showing your first boyfriend your baby pictures and telling him embarrassing stories.

There was a long pause, and it hung in the air, making the whole room a little heavier.

"I've got some work to do, Temari, so I'll be downstairs."

Before he turned around, he let out a small wink in Shikamaru's direction.

The air was lifted up when he left, as if a very big tension between Temari and Daichi had been released.

They both sat there for a few moments, both staring at the blank wall in front of them, as if it was suddenly more interesting than any thing else in the room.

Shikamaru opened his mouth to say something, but his voice cracked. He cleared his throat and made a face like he felt really stupid. "U-um…"

Temari turned to face him.

"Who was that?" A proposely fake smile grew on his face. He felt like a little kid, unaware of everything. More than anything, he wanted to know why there was another man in the house.

Her face lit up. "Oh, that's just Daichi," she explained. "He's like my dad."

"And how did this happen, exactly?" Shikamar asked, desperate to have a conversation.

"Well, when… um… Gaara and Kankuro died…" she paused. It was obvious that one still stung. "Well, he's always been sort of like family to us, so it was only natural that he be my gaurdian until I turned 18. We both live on our own now, but his house is under construction at the moment, so he's coming here to do work and… steal my food," she half laughed. "Once his house, always his house, he says."

He genuinely smiled—the first time in a while—at this. "Well, that makes sense. There's a rule here that you aren't allowed to live alone until you're 18, right?"

She nodded. "I guess it's different in Konoha, isn't it."

"Yeah."

Yet another awkward silence.

Shikamaru wanted to ask about her brothers, but didn't have the heart.

There was a loud gong outside (saved by the bell!), and both heads turned towards the open window. The sun was almost about to set.

"So is there a festival at this time every year?"

Temari nodded again with a closed-mouthed smile on her face. "Yeah, it's just some weird festival. It doesn't celebrate anything, apparently. No holidays or anything, actually. The people in the village just got a little bored in the summer 1,000+ years ago, and decided to make a festival. Been a tradition every since."

"Huh. That's cool." Again, the air was heavy as Shikamaru spoke. _Ah, what the hell_, he said to himself. "Do you want to go?"

Temari tried to think of an excuse. How would it look if the Kazikage was out in a kimono with a boy form Konoha? "Well, I mean…" She searched for the words. "I go every year…"

There was a series of choking and coughing sounds coming from just behind the basement door.

She sighed. "I'd love to."

As Temari stepped out from her bedroom, Shikamaru was in shock. Temari was a beautiful woman. She had tourquise eyees that shone even in the night, and her proportianate body was just _perfect_. Honestly, he hadn't thought that she could look any better than she had in that black dress she wore to the Konoha Ball.

But in that traditional kimono she was wearing to the festival.. I mean… _damn_!

Shikamaru blushed a little bit and tried to look away.

Temari, trying to maintain her cocky and confident perosnality, asked a simple question. "What do you think?" she spun aroung in a circle with her arms out.

At least, it iwould/i have been a simple question. If only Shikamaru wasn't resisting the urge to break out into a nosebleed right then and there. He studdered, scratching the back of his head. "Y-you look… great," he managed.

Temari didn't know if his lack of words was a good thing or a bad thing. True, it _was_ a very beautiful kimono. Made from pure silk with a hand-painted fabric printed over the cloth. Nothing short from regal, of course. But it was, without a doubt, uncomfortable. The obi was hard to tie and the under-dress beneath the outer layer was horrible qaulity. She had only had enough money to buy the basic, outer kimono. She had to settle with a cheapo under-dress.

There was another gong from outside, reminding the two that they should leave soon if they wanted to make it to any of the interesting parts of the festival.

Shikmaru cleared his throat and motioned her to go ahead of him out the door.

The festival was your typical Japanese celebration. Stalls of traditional food and many different performers dancing or throwing fire on the sides of the road.

The two shinobi both had fun, really. Despite the many times that Temari had attended the festival, it never really got old. Every year there were new acts and dealers, each approved by Temari herself. Being the Kazikage sometimes included the strangest jobs. Watching every single bizarre act and approving the ones she thoguth suitable and entertaining was one of them.

However, the only thing that continually reminded them of the situation were the stares of people and the whispering.

Things like:

_"Who is that?"_

_"Isn't that Kazikage-sama?"_

_"Are they… on a date?"_

_"The Kazikage? With a man?"_

It was a little insulting. Shikamaru was, of course, not a native to the Land of Wind. That much was obvious. But what was wrong with that? Was it that unlikely that Temari would be with him? That was the most insulting part. And what did they think Temari was, chopped liver? She's the Kazikage, sure, but isn't she allowed to have a life?

Temari was used to this. She was known in her village to have a rather cold and demanding personality, as well as never getting personal with anyone but her deceased brothers and her "god-father", Daichi.

Temari knew that this was just sort a self-defense mechanism. In her eyes, emotions were weaknesses—they were everything that she didn't want to be. She never cried, never let anyone get under her skin.. Supposedly. Even so, she never showed it.

Much to Shikamaru's pleasure, Temari was very confident around those who knew her that way. Which included the whole village. So, she was very bold with her actions. However, to Shikamaru's dismay, she_ did _deny their feelings, assuming that she felt it too. As far as everyone at the festival was concerned, they were "just friends".

It was really troublesome how everyone there had to come up and ask about the lazy man beside her. _Might as well start a booth_, she kept thinking, _The Ask-The-Kazikage-The-Same-Question-Over-And-Over-Again Booth! For only 1 dollar! We'd be rich._

There was a mental slap. _I'd be rich! I'D be rich! Dummy! Shikamaru has nothing to do with me._

Although she had admitted her love to Shikamaru a month before, she had immediately gone back to denying it. Although she knew she'd never be able to get rid of the feeling of being empty when he wasn't there, that didn't mean she had to show it. Or admit it.

Daichi was the only one who knew, besides Shikamaru and herself. And she had made sure that he would keep his mouth shut. She knew his weaknesses, and she used them well to make him swear on his own blood that he would not tell a single person of what she had said. It was an accident, of course. She would have never willingly told anyone. She had thought that no one was home and was talking to herself. She was angry and sad from the walk home from Konoha. Oh, she wished they could have just picked up where they had left off.

By the end of the evening, Temari was exhausted. Having answered the same question to everyone in the village, eventually having a varying in the wording of in the inquiry, she was very willing to go home and just flop onto her bed. That is, after taking off the extremely uncomfortable kimono—another reason why she was desperate to escape the smoky air of the festival.

A voice inside her head, unwelcome, of course, whispered, _I bet he's just as desperate as you are to tear all of your clothes off…_

She banished the thought, oblivious of the frustrated lookt hat had suddenly come over her face.

Shikamaru leaned over and looked at her, studying her face. "What's wrong?"

Temari snapped back to reality. "What?"

"You looked really exhausted and frustrated fro a second there."

Appalled at herself, she denied it quickly. Why had she let her emotions show on her face? It was something she rarely ever did.

Shikamaru, unconvinced, pushed further. "You sure?"

She nodded, here eyes still not looking at him. "Just a little tired."

He let out a breath which he had found he was holding. Why was it that whenever he spoke to her, he had to remind herself to breathe? "Yeah, me too."

She looked at him, now. "You're always tired, lazy!" She, on the other hand, was comfortable with Shikamaru. Too comfortable, she hated the feeling. Being open to someone… it felt like she was too vulnerable. It just felt wrong. Now that most of the crowds had gone home for the night, though the festival went on until morning, she felt more comfortable showing some signs of life on her face.

God, that was no excuse. In the end, it did feel good. To not have ot use all her energy hiding things.

"That's true," he agreed without argument.

Finally, a real conversation.

They passed a face-painting booth, and Temari forced Shikamaru to get a butterfly on his cheek. Which would have been cute, if it was the other way around and Temari wasn't so… Temari-ish.

"So where are you staying?"

This caught Shikamaru off guard. "Huh?"

Temari, noticing the stress in his voice all of the sudden, repeated, "Where are you staying? You're staying here for a week, so where you going to stay?"

"Hehe… about that…" The awkward level was suddenly rising.

"You are so _lazy_!! You forgot to book a place to stay?"

He shrugged. "Oops."

She groaned. "Come on."

They arrived at a hotel, asking for an extra room. Unfortunetely, there were none left. As well as in the next hotel. And the next. And, apparently, every other housing unit in the whole village.

You'd think that the Kazikage would be able to get a room in a motel, right? But then again, what were they going to do? Kick someone out of a room they already payed for? Of course not.

Much to Temari's dismay (and her inner fangirlinesses' ecstacy), Shikamaru was forced to stay with Temari.


	5. Chapter 5 Safe

When they arrived at Temari's house, Daichi was asleep on the couch, and it was 9:00pm. Very early for Daichi and Temari, who a 10:30pm run to the grocery store was completely normal. He usually stayed at the house until about midnight, and then went home, Shikamaru had learned.

Temari, of course, proceeded to continue on with her usual nighttime routine while Shikamaru struggled to make the bed that he was supposed to sleep in.

Temari, now in sweats and a T-shirt—her form of PJ's—opened the door of her room and walked down the hall. She was on her way to the bathroom, which, she suddenly realized, was the only one in the house. She slapped her forehead, leaning on the marble counter of her kitchen, which she had passed on her way to the bathroom. "Dammit," she whispered, a little too loudly. Shikamaru's room was right outside the kitchen door.

She opened her eyes to a note, in Daichi's handwriting, in the center of the counter. She slid it across the table and read it: "Dear Temari"—an immediate giveaway that this was not an average note—"I'm going out to buy some LEMONS"—large letters, capitals, underlined many times—"I didn't want to intrude to see if you had any already"—she sighed—"See you tomorrow."

She groaned, ripping the paper in half, crumpling it up, and then tossing it into the trashcan. Sometimes he was iso/i immature. She blocked the thoughts that now plagued her mind.

She continued on her way to the bathroom to take her evening shower. She reread the farmiliar note on the door that she had put there shortly after Daichi had gotten the beating of a lifetime. It read, in all capital letters: IF THE DOOR IS LOCKED, DO NOT COME IN"—you'd think it would be obvious, but NO—"IF THE DOOR IS UNLOCKED, FEEL FREE TO USE THE BATHROOM. I KEEP THE DOOR CLOSED, SO JUST BECAUSE IT'S CLOSED DOES NOT MEAN I'M INSIDE. CLOSE THE DOOR WHEN YOU ARE DONE. PUT THE TOILET SEAT DOWN."

Hopefully, Shikamaru knew how to read.

She opened the door, the knob clicking as she pulle dit down, and shut the door behind her.

She pulled off her clothes, one by one, and pulled down her hair. She stared at herself in the mirror for a long time.

Every time she looked at herself all she could see was the note she had written on the other side of Shikamaru's paper.

iI love you./i

The words rang in her head clearly. But it wasn't a voice. It was funny. How three words could be on your mind for 7 years before they'd even been spoken… and then for another month before there was even a voice to mathc them. They just spun around her head, mercilessly passing by the bruises and scars in her heart.

She opened the glass door the shower and turned on the water.

There was a squeaking of pipes and the sound of running water right above Shikamaru's head. The sound of of water hitting the tiles of the shower floor came from the bathroom.

Shikamaru stared at his door for a while. Temari. In the bathroom. In the shower… naked.

He bonked his own head, harder than necessary, to banish the thoughts. It wasn't his fault she was so damn sexy.

He took off his clothes and pulled on sweats and a T-shirt (also his verison of PJ's). his eyes fell upon his reflection in the small mirror, and he was again reminded of the still evident butterfly on his face. He groaned. Or sighed. He wasn't sure which one, but either way, there were big hints of distress in it.

He stretched his arms out and then went outside the door. Searching for a bathroom, he wandered around the house before coming to the bathroom with Temari in it. He almost reached for the doorknob, then turned around. iThere has to be another one./i

After making two more rounds around the house, he finally realized that it was hopeless. He could either barge in on Temari's shower (the more appealing strategy, at the moment.) or go to sleep with this stupid butterfly on his cheek, risking it becoming harder to get off. He really wanted to get that paint off his face, AND he REALLY wanted to sneak into Temari's shower. So it seemed like a win-win situation.

iWait a second/i, He thought. iNo I do NOT want to sneak into her shower. God./i

Only when he approached the bathroom for a fourth time did he see the sign on the door. He read it, and then once more reached out and put his hand on the handle.

His hand stayed still there. iI'll check to see if it's locked. If it is, then that's that. If it isn't… then I guess it's okay./i He decided.

He turned the handle very slowly, afraid it would make a noise. If it was locked and Temari heard it turn, he would later be accused (and possibly beaten for) trying to take a peak.

It was unlocked. He slowly opened the door. He first peered in cautiously, then being mesmerized by the mass of skin behind the glass doors. It was blurry, steamed up so that he could only see the basic outline of her body. Her hands were on her head, spreading in shampoo.

He snapped back to his mission—getting the butterly off his face.

He sneaked in, trying to be quiet, hoping she wouldn't notice he was there. He reached to turn the handle on the sink, but it made the most horrible and loudest squeaking sound he had heard since Ino had found a spider on her arm at a team meeting.

Temari turned her head and screamed. It wasn't a horrified scream, it was more of a I'm-going-to-kill-you scream—very loud.

Shikamaru feared the worst but couldn't keep his eyes off of her as she ran out of the shower, taking to shampoo bottle with her, and proceeded to charge towards him.

He fell backwards in his haste to get away, and it turned out that Temari was standing above him, bottle in hand, about to hit him with everything she had for sneaking into the bathroom while she was in the bathroom. Then, about 3 miliseconds from pounding his face in, she froze, suddenly aware of Shikamaru staring at her perfectly toned body.

iOh my God. /iShe screamed again as she stood back up and whipped a towel off the rack beside her. She wrapped around her body as fast as she could.

Too late. The image was burned into Shikamaru's mind forever. How could anyone forget something like that? A beautiful woman, dripping wet… naked… He almost drooled, then stopped himself as temari ran out of the room, her hair still covered in a little bit of shampoo.

iOh my God. Oh my God. Oh. My. God./i She kept reapeating as she sat down on her bed. She was only mad in the spur of the moment. Wouldn't you be, if someone, even your love (There! She said it!), snuck into your shower unexpectedly. Now she felt kind of bad, and thouroughly embarrassed. Did he sneak in? Must have been desperate to have to pick the lock and…

Actually, now that she thought about it, she didn't remember locking the door. "Oh my god," she said aloud.

She threw on a T-shirt and shorts after wiping the shampoo residue out of her hair

Shikamaru, still sitting on the bathroom floor, was in a daze. iOops./i Now he was in for it.

Suddenly Temari burst through the door of the bathroom, wearing new clothes that were stained with the water from her hair and body. They looked into eachother's eyes for god knows how long and then started the say something, the look on her face telling him it was a serious subject. And then she burst into laughter. He was puzzled. She wasn't mad.

"Oh my God! I cannot take you seriuosly with that thing on your face!" She said between bursts of laughter. It was the first time in a while that she had heard her laugh. She looked so happy.

He laughed, too, at this. She stepped out of the bathroom and sat down on the floor, trying to stop herself form laughing. When was the last time she had laughed like this? No, when was the last time she had laughed at all? It felt wonderful.

But how could he do this her? Ever since her brothers had died, everyone she knew had been desperately trying to get her to smile. And then, Shikamaru just looked at her and she was rolling on the floor with laughter. But.. the look on his face! It was histerical!

Shikamaru splashed some cold water onto his face and rubbed the face painting from his face.

By the time he came out of the bathroom, Temari was calmed down and her mind was focused on the serious subject that she had tried to bring up.

It was quiet. He took a seat down next to her on the small couch. And neither one of them looked at each other for a minute.

"What is this?" Shikamaru eventually said, splitting the silence.

Temari turned to face him, studying his eyes. She saw something there that almost no one had ever seen there. Confusion.

She was silent in return, and Shikamaru turned away, looking straight ahead of him. He could feel her looking at him.

What could she say to that?

"I don't know," she said saimply, and he turned back to her.

They stared into each other's eyes for the longest time. How could he explain it to her? It wasn't like it was just something he could get over—believe me, he'd tried. The silence was killing them. The lack of words was enough to drive him insane, and the way she was looking at him was enough to make him melt. There was a long time, it coul dhave been hours, when they just sat there, neither on daring to move.

"It's love," one of them whispered, niether one sure if it was the other or themselves. They had both been thinking it and they had both wanted the courage to say it aloud.

Temari closed her eyes slowly. She tried to take deep breaths and keep her emotions in check. No way was she going to ruin this moment. She leaned into him and pressed her lips to his for moment.

She leaned her head into his shoulder. Strength wasn't going to help her here, might as well let her true colors show. She was a sensitive weakling, helpless and protection. Somehow, she felt safe when Shikamaru wrapped his arms around her.


	6. Chapter 6 Interrupted

Waking up in the morning was definetely harder than usual. Shikamaru hadn't slep too fantastically, the same with Temari. In fact, neither one had gotten really any sleep at all. All night, Shikamaru had held Temari and stroked her hair as she gave in to her natural weaknesses.

But eventually, Temari fell asleep. Much to Shikamaru's dismay, he had to leave very early in the morning to train the recommended shinobi to bring to Konoha. Temari had woken up to find him gone, his body replaced with pillows underneath her head.

She sighed, silently preparing herself for the LONG day that was sure to be ahead.

Shikamaru came to the meeting spot to find 5 well-trained ninjas waiting for him.

One of them stepped forward to tell him he was late, but Shikamaru waved his hand in dismissal before he could. "Look," he proceeded, "my mission here is to gain your trust enough to bring you to the Leaf Village to help out while most of our ninjas are out dealing with the sudden wave of mission. So basically, you need to be trustworthy. Raise your hand if you can honestly say that you cannot be trusted to be honorable." One of them rose their hand, much to Shikamaru's surprise and amusement. He pointed his thumb over his shoulder. "Leave."

He sighed as the young shinobi poofed away in a cloud of ninja smoke. It was going to be a long day. A long week, at that. His only encouragment was that he would go back to see Temari at the end of each day.

In the Kazikage's office, Temari sat idly at her desk, picking up her pen, dropping it, and doing it again. A loud sigh filled the office as she slumped over and rested her head on her hand. Of course, whenever she needs the distractions the most, there is absolutely no work to do.

----

After a long day of training the ninjas, all of which were chuunins, with the exception of one, Shikamaru walked through the sandy village, slowly but surely making his way towards Temari's house. She wasn't going to be home, so he was sure he would have to be either alone or alone with Daichi. Neither of which he wanted to be. He couldn't forget the dark feeling throughout the whole house when he was even in the same room as him. Like he knew something Shikamaru didn't. Like he knew something Temari didn't want him to know.

… maybe he would go to Temari's house.

Once there, he heard Daichi yell a greeting through from a few rooms over. Shikamaru followed the direction of the voice into a small room that looked somewhat like an office.

Daichi looked up from what he was doing to look at Shikamaru. "Sit down," he said calmly, now turned completely form his work.

He took a seat on bed in the room. It looked like it once belonged to someone, but was now shared by the computer and massive stack of papers on the desk.

He seemed like the typed of guy who got straight to the point.

"I've heard a lot about you," he commented, looking him over.

Aha. He was right. He also didn't like where this was going.

"Why didn't you write?"

Shikamaru grimaced. No way was there an apporopriate answer for that question. He couldn't just say, "Oh I was in a month-long daze of happiness and ecstacy." No. He needed an excuse.

He hesitated. "There was nothing to say."

"There was nothing to say?!" Daichi said, raising his voice to a very effective level without going into a shout. "Do you know what she went through?"

At that, Shikamaru felt guilty. He may not have not known exactly what she had gone through during that month, but he knew the feeling well. His eyes shifted to the floor.

"She was always the first one to check the mailbox, always met the mailman before he even got to the station. But there was never a letter. But she always puts on a face. Let me tell you, the hardest thing you can do in yoru life is suffer and have no one care. Even if they don't know, it doesn't matter."

Yeah. He knew the feelign a little too well for his likings. "I know," he whispered.

Daichi sighed. "The point is, you have a lot of making up to do. You owe her a month of your life."

"She owes me seven years," he mumbled, as quietly as possible, afriad Daichi had caught on to Temari's forceful nature. Scary thought. He looked up to Daichi's face and said, "I heard you've been living with Temari for a long time."

He nodded, glad for the changed subject. "I have."

Shikamaru was too tempted to ask. He couldn't hold back. "Does she… talk about me?"

He laughed at this. "You know women are. Every new boyfriend is the only topic of conversation until it's over." Then he leaned in closer, resting his elbows on his knees. "She's not like that," it was almost a whisper.

"What?" He didn't really understand.

"Boy, you are inoti. as smart as she keeps saying." She sat up straight again. "I'm saying, no matter who she's seeing, all she ever talks about is you."

Something swelled up in his chest. At the same time, he felt a little insulted that she had been dating in his absence. Not that he had done any better. Sometimes the loneliness is too much to bear without _something._

"Shikamaru," he straightened up at the sound of his own name, and began paying more attention to Daichi. "She loves you."

He nodded, taking this in.

_She loves you._

_She loves you._

_She loves you._

_She loves you._

It hung thick in the air for a minute. And he smiled.

Daichi smiled, too, at this. "And no matter how clever you think you are, I see right through you," he said as he swiveled back around his chair. "You can't keep a secret like that from me."

_Wow._ Shikamaru couldn't just leave that one hanging. "Well, it's pretty obvious for you, too. You're missing someone ri—"

Daichi swung around, a little too fast, in his chair. He looked very serious, looking straight into Shikamaru's eyes. Cutting deeper into his dark eyes than most people had ever dared to. The emotion showed through clearly, peircing through the very air. Shikamaru saw for the first time how red his eyes were. "That's none of your business, boy."

Soft spot.

He swung around, and after a minute, Shikamaru got up and walked out of the room quietly.

When Temari finally came home, she was exhuasted, not from being busy, but from lack of occupation. Funny how that is. Would it kill people to even things out a little? It's like, one day they decide to dump everything on her, and then for the next week… nothing. And then they take all of that week's documents and pour htem onto her desk at once.

She turned around the corner to see Daichi scrathing some things down on a piece of paper, obviously frustrated. She turned back around the corner, deciding not to bother him.

Actually, she just had better things to do. Like find out if Shikamaru was there or not. Maybe if he wasn't she could get a full shower in….

Nope. He was asleep on the bed in the guest room he was using.

Temari leaned against the door frame and looked him over. She walked in, her feet barely audible on the wooden floor.

Little did she know he was awake.

Cursed with the eternal suffering of light sleeping, Shikamaru woke up immediately when Temari closed the front door behind her. Too tired to put any effort into greeting her, he stayed where he was, and was now fully aware of her sitting down on the bed next to him. He didn't open his eyes, deciding to just visualize her using what he already knew about her position. Yet all he could think about was …

How dangerously close her ass was to his face.

He was tempted to open his eyes, but was afraid of what would happen.

She tried to hide his jump as she began talking. "You are the laziest man I have ever met. And yet, you can make my life seem perfect just by looking at me."

She turned her head to look at him, his eyes closed. She put a hand on his chest lightly.

The touch felt like it was from an angel, too perfect to be human.

She leaned down her head towards his and hovered there for a minute, looking at his perfect face.

He decided to stop pretending to be asleep and slowly lifted his hands to the back of her head and eased her face into his.

Temari was wondering how long he was going to pretend.

Shikamaru's mouth tingled with the taste of her lips. He started out gentle, just barely moving his lips against hers. It went slowly, but after a moment or two Temari applied a little more pressure on his lips, leaning in farther with her body. Now her arms were on either side of Shikamaru's body on the bed, supporting her weight.

He moved his hands from the back of her head to her shoulders, sliding them down her arms smoothly. He gently grabbed her wrists and pulled them out from underneath her, causing her body to fall on top of his chest.

He held her hands out from their bodies for a minute, letting their lips mingle together before dropping them to touch her face.

Now they were both laying down on the bed, Temari on top of Shikamaru. She tilted her head to the side as Shikamaru sucked her bottom lip, a little more enthusiastically now.

She positioned her elbows on the bed on either side of his head and folded her hands underneath his head, pushing his head closer to hers. She then nibbled on Shikamaru's top lip and he repeated the action on her bottom lip.

Temari stopped breifly to take a deep breath. He rolled over, pushing her onto the bottom of the kiss. He took her hands in his and their fingers intertwined instinctively as he pressed them back onto the bed, taking control of the kiss.

He crashed his lips onto hers now, trying desperately to contain himself. He didn't want to hurt her or cross her boundaries, but he just couldn't help it any longer.

He parted her lips with his tongue and slowly traced her smooth white teeth. From there he found her tongue and there was a spark as they touched.

This aroused Temari's energy a little bit and she immediately brought her tongue to life.

Now they were fighting each other's tongues as Temari switched positions with him again so that now she was on top once more.

She pressed down hard on his body, her hands holding his face as they kissed more passionately. Temari pushed Shikamaru closer to the edge of the bed until his legs were dangling off the edge, he knelt down on the ground, breaking the kiss for a moment. When he looked back up to Temari, she was diving towards him and their lips joined again. She was leaning down from the bed to reach his mouth, his face turned upwards to meet her.

He wrapped his arms around her waist, traveling up and down her back. Then they went and grabbed her ass, lifting her up with him as he stood up. Temari's legs tangled themselves in with his desperately.

She stood on her tip-toes to touch the ground from where he was holding her, then gave up and jumped up to wrap her legs around his waist.

She threw her arms around his neck, pulling him closer still until their kiss was passionate enough for both their likings.

One arm still holding Shikamaru's face close to hers, she used one to rip out the tie that was holding his hair up into a ponytail. The hair immediately fell down around his face and she pushed it away quickly, unable to bear anything being between them. Preferably not even clothes, but she was getting there.

He released his hands from her ass, making her wrap her legs around him tighter to maintain her position. He tore his lips away from hers and she was disappointed until he placed them back into the corner of her neck, causing her to let out a small moan. Her moan made him hard and he kisssed her neck lustfully before sucking on the skin to give her a hickie.

Her back arched with pleasure and her head flew backwards, exposing more of her neck. He bit her throat playfully as her eyes closed in delight. He bit harder, leaving a red spot where he had been and her eyes screwed even farther shut, a smile tracing her lips.

He trailed his tongue up to her ear, noticing the pain in her breath all of a sudden. "Am I hurting you?" he breathed into her ear, sending chills down her body.

She pushed their lips back together in response and they continued.

She breathed into his mouth, almost panting. "You'll have to try harder than that…"

He smirked and wasn't sure she heard him when he just barely said aloud "As you wish," before crashing his lips back onto her neck, making her moan in pleasure again.

Her feet fell back to the floor and they both found theirselves at a wall. He pushed her up against it. He lifted his head up to her hair and ripped the bands that were holding it up.

_Sexy,_ kept pulsing through Temari's head.

With one hand, Shikamaru pinned her wrists above her head on the wall behind them. With the other hand he briskly swiped the hair out of her face. He then locked their lips together again and his tongue immediately wriggled into her mouth, hungry for more.

Now Temari couldn't stifle the moans and just let them out. It was a little embarassing that Shikamaru could so easily bring her pleasure, but she knew he didn't care.

He put his knee in between her legs, lifting her up just barely on the wall. Her dress rode up from the friction between her and the wall, exposing her thighs.

This did not do unnoticed for Shikamaru. His hands traced her figure down to her knees. He slowly slid his hands up her legs and Temari moaned once more, louder this time. Her neck rolled back as he came closer to her crotch. His hands lifted up her black dress until it exposed her black laced panties.

He felt his cock hardening.

With a mind of their own, his hands went farther up before reaching her navel. They traced circles around it and he smirked as she pursed her lips together, trying to maintain her lust and pleasure. Despite her best efforts, it was obvious on her face that she was driving him crazy.

He stopped lifting up her dress and let it fall down again and put his hands on her neck and pulling their hips together. He gripped her neck tighter and locked their eyes together.

Temari couldn't bring herself to tear away from his eyes. Usually blank and vacant, they were now full of emotions that she was struggling to understand.

Now all she could think about was how hard it must be to contain himself. She could see in his eyes that he was desperately trying not to hurt her or invade her personal boundaries. It made her feel guilty. Eh, why did he need to hold back? She wouldn't mind…

Just as she began to unzip Shikamaru's pants, there was a knock on the door.

Shikamaru groaned angrily. "Shit."

Temari fumbled with her hands to get her hair back up into her trademark four ponytails as quickly as humanely possible.

Shikamaru straightened out his shirt and pants before attempting to fake a stumbling out of bed towards the door.

Temari stood behind the table in the room, trying her best to conceal herself.

He made a fake yawn as he answered the door to the small bedroom. "Yes?" He sounded highly irritated.

Daichi ignored him and stepped past him into the room, peering around suspiciously.

"Can I help you?" Shikamaru said. How rude.

Temari closed her eyes, praying that Daichi had suddenly become the worst tracking ninja in all of Suna. Fat chance.

He turned around. "Have you seen Temari?" He pointed a finger straight at the lazy ninja in front of him.

"I haven't. Are you sure she's home already?"

He nodded confidently. "I heard her come in a half-hour ago."

He blushed. Half an hour?! "Hn. Maybe she went out for something?"

He glared at him. "Look, if you've seen her, I won't care. I'm not like her brothers, okay? Just tell me where she is, and it'll save us both a lot of trouble. If you two were having sex in here, hell, I wouldn't care!"

Shikamaru blushed harder trying his best to conceal it.

Temari sighed loudly and stood up from behind the table, trusting Daichi not to freak out.

To both of their's surprise, he grinned. "Knew it!" He almost shouted. "Knew it!" Then he took a closer look at Temari. "You look like shit, you guys. Really?"

Her hair was sticking up in many places, and Shikamaru had one too many stands of hair loose from his usually perfect ponytail. Temari's skirt was torn up one of the sides.

Daichi looked down at Shikamaru's pants. "You couldn't even zip up your pants?!" He extended his arms out to the side in disbeleif.

Temari stepped in. "Okay, before this gets any more awkward, this is NOT what it looks like. Honest." She put her hands out in front of her.

It was true. However, if Diachi had interupted about five minutes later, that would have been a different story.

Daichi laughed out loud. "I'll leave you two alone."

Temari sat down on the bed, rubbing her temples in circular motions. "Bitch."

"At least he knocked," he offered.


End file.
